Resurrection life
What a sermon! What a teacher! A masterly exposition of the Hebrew scriptures by the very one of whom those scriptures spoke. How often do we hear teaching on Jesus' resurrection that sets it in the context of the whole purposes of God?
When Jesus rose from the dead, he fulfilled God's prophecy to Satan that the offspring of the woman would crush the serpent's head (Gen. 3:15). The 'firstborn over all creation' (Col. 1:15) became the 'firstfruits' of those who had died (1 Cor. 15:20). The hope of the establishment of the Kingdom of God - so central to the proclamation of the OT prophets - was also fulfilled in Jesus' resurrection. Victory over death and the establishment of the Kingdom - both goals that will ultimately be fulfilled when Christ returns - were inaugurated by Jesus two thousand years ago.
And we are the 'secondfruits' of Jesus' resurrection, raised with him to newness of life, and sent to proclaim the kingdom of God, and to live by and promote its values.
The two disciples to whom Jesus opened the scriptures on the road to Emmaus couldn't have grasped the full implications of Jesus' teaching. But they understood enough to run straight back to Jerusalem to share with the other disciples the amazing news that Jesus was alive. It transformed all their lives, and, when the Holy Spirit came a few weeks later, they set to work to turn the world upside down.
Two of the most striking features of the early church were its sense of community, and the members' attitude to their material possessions. Are these things that characterise the life of our churches today? Or have they been eclipsed by the individualism and materialism of our contemporary society? Are we simply too comfortable to challenge the values that drive our politics and economics? And to curtail our own standard of living in order to bring justice to the poor?
The Spirit's power was demonstrated in miraculous signs done by the apostles, but also in the vibrant witness of a transformed and transforming community.
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